1. Field of the Invention
The present application is generally related to lighting and is more specifically related to landscape lighting systems and light fixtures used to provide landscape lighting.
2. Description of the Related Art
Landscape lighting designers and installers typically utilize various lighting techniques to create a decorative landscape lighting design for a property owner. The selected landscape lighting design matches the property owner's preferences, desires, and tastes, and the theme that exists for the property. Property owner preferences may include safety, security and the beautification of the property's outdoor landscape.
Satisfying a property owner's landscape lighting objectives may be accomplished using different lighting design techniques. In many instances, the lighting fixture used to achieve these objectives is a directional flood light. Some of the more popular techniques used to create an overall lighting design include up lighting, moon lighting, cross lighting, mirror lighting, wash lighting, wall lighting, step lighting, grazing, silhouetting, backlighting, shadowing, path lighting, down lighting, and reflected lighting.
In many instances, landscape lighting designers seek to create a cohesive lighting design that is specific to the elements that exist on a specific property. The goal of the installer is to provide a cohesive well lit scene, and to incorporate other aesthetic lighting techniques such as cohesion, visual depth, focal points, shadows, textures, perspective, lighting balance, and symmetry, as well as different lighting “rooms” and an overall visually interactive space for the subject property.
Any professional landscape lighting designer knows that light output levels and beam selection is extremely important in order to create depth, dimension, texture, space, focal points and produce a really spectacular landscape lighting design. Merely washing all of the plant material, regardless of size, diaphanous or reflective properties, surface textures and the like, at the same brightness washes out and flattens the design so that no lighting design of any consequence will result. Bad lighting designs result in hot spots, black unlit holes, uneven illumination levels, overly bright spots and under-illuminated areas. The extreme differences between the contrasting light levels fatigue the eye and results in landscape lighting that is uncomfortable to look at.
Thus, there remains a need for improved landscape lighting systems and improved light fixtures that provide improved light intensity control and improved control over the direction of the light. In addition, there remains a need for lighting systems that enable the beam angle, beam spread and cone of light emanating from light fixtures to be changeable, controllable and adjustable to meet a wide range of landscape lighting needs. There also remains a need for landscape lighting systems whereby adjustments to the light intensity level may be made during the day.